Gibson, Bob (1935—)

Bob Gibson's pitching for the St. Louis Cardinals earned him a dominant place in baseball history. The 6 [.minute] 1 [.second] right-hander used an overwhelming fastball and a peerless array of breaking pitches to strike fear in the hearts of National League batters throughout the 1960s and early 1970s. Gibson reserved his finest performances for the biggest games, outshining all competitors in the three World Series in which he pitched.

A frail child who suffered from a heart murmur, Gibson was encouraged to pursue sports by his older brother, a YMCA athletic director. He signed with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1957 for $4000, but did not crack the team's starting rotation until 1961. His breakthrough season came in 1963, when he went 18-9, and the Cardinals emerged as a contender for the National League pennant.

Gibson earned a reputation as the ultimate big game pitcher by winning the clinching games of the 1964 and 1967 World Series. In 1964, he held a powerful New York Yankees lineup in check on only two days of rest. In 1967, he beat the Boston Red Sox almost single-handedly, recording three of the Cardinals' four victories. All these wins were just a prelude for what was to come, however.

In 1968, Gibson enjoyed one of the finest seasons ever registered by a major league pitcher. He won 22 games against only nine losses, including a streak of 15 consecutive victories. He recorded 13 shutouts, highlighted by a stretch of 92 innings in which only two runs were scored against him. His earned run average of 1.12 set a National League record, and was the lowest recorded for a pitcher since 1914. For his efforts, Gibson was voted the National League Cy Young Award by the Baseball Writers Association of America.

As impressive as he was in the regular season, Gibson was even more dominant in the World Series. He struck out a record 17 Detroit Tigers in the opening game of the Fall Classic, prevailing 4-0 over 30-game winner Denny McLain. He won Game Four as well, 10-1, to run his World Series record to 7-1. But when he tried to pitch the deciding seventh game on just two days of rest, even the unhittable Gibson met his match. He carried a shutout into the seventh inning but was beaten by the Tigers' Mickey Lolich, 4-1. It was Gibson's last World Series game.

Thanks in large measure to Gibson's efforts, 1968 went down in baseball history as the "Year of the Pitcher." To compensate for a perceived imbalance, the next season Major League Baseball lowered the pitcher's mound, giving batters a fighting chance against the new breed of power pitchers led by Gibson and the New York Mets' Tom Seaver. Despite these adjustments, Gibson continued to dominate National League batters well into the 1970s. He won 20 games in each of the next two seasons and was named to the All-Star team both years.

Gibson was feared around the league as one of the most intense, aggressive competitors in baseball. He believed it was a pitcher's right to knock down a batter with a high, inside fastball if the occasion demanded it. Gibson's intimidating demeanor even extended to his own teammates. On one occasion, when catcher Tim McCarver approached the mound for a conference, Gibson glowered at him angrily. "The only thing you know about pitching is you can't hit it," he informed the terrified receiver. McCarver slunk back behind the plate with his words of advice still stuck in his gullet.

Although the Cardinals did not return again to the World Series, Gibson continued to reach personal milestones. He registered 56 total shutouts and became the second pitcher in major league history to amass 3000 strikeouts. When a series of injuries to his arms and legs began to take a toll on him, Gibson realized the end of his career was at hand. After Pete LaCock, a light-hitting first baseman known primarily for being the son of Hollywood Squares host Peter Marshall, crushed a grand slam off him in September of 1975, Gibson decided to call it quits. He retired as the winningest pitcher in St. Louis Cardinals history.

In recognition of his achievements, Gibson was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981. He worked as a baseball broadcaster, a Major League pitching coach for several teams, and in 1998 he accepted a position as an advisor to the commissioner of baseball. He continued to speak out on the art of pitching and the state of the game at the close of the century.

—Robert E. Schnakenberg

Further Reading:

Deane, Bill. Bob Gibson. New York, Chelsea House, 1993.

Shatzkin, Mike. The Ballplayers: Baseball's Ultimate Biographical Reference. New York, William Morrow, 1990.